Chicks come up short in state semifinal

Blytheville's basketball season came to an end March 13 with a 51-45 loss to Little Rock Mills in the state semifinal.

The Chicks and Comets dealt with foul trouble throughout the contest. Blytheville's starting guards collected three fouls in the opening half, while TJ Jackson picked two in the first half as well.

Despite the foul trouble, the Chicks still managed to take a 28-23 lead into the halftime break.

"It was wild, it sucks to get to a game like this and get what I think were some pretty questionable calls. It seems like when we play people their best players get protected, but when we're in big games, our better players get targeted," Chickasaw head coach Mckenzie Pierce said.

"I hate Lamont [Jackson] and Ty'reonn [King] had to sit over there in the first half with me, but I'm proud as hell that we were able to get to the locker room up."

Gritty play on both sides of the ball helped Blytheville create their lead, as well as a much needed scoring punch from Kylen Wells.

"[Our guys] battled their tails off in that first half. Kylen was just unbelievable in that opening half. He's been playing with a jacked up ankle and knee and still gave it everything he had all night. He was a huge spark for us and kept us in the game, we just couldn't get back over the hump," Pierce said.

Both sides exchanged the lead numerous times in the third quarter, trading one and two-point leads.

The game was tied at 37 going into the fourth, where scoring became rough for both teams. Mills was able to edge the Chicks 14-8 in the quarter and walk away with the victory.

Wells led the Chicks in scoring in this contest with 16 points, followed by Johnny Anderson with 8.

Despite falling short of their ultimate goal, this group of Chicks were able to experience an abundance of success over the year.

"I'm just proud as hell of them that's really all I can say," Pierce said. "They've battled their guts out. They've grown so much as people and basketball players over the last four years years. To be conference champions as ninth, 10th, 11th and 12th graders is pretty rare. And I know we came up a couple games short of what we really wanted but these guys have left a serious mark."